高职高专实用英语Unit 3课文+译文
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Unit 3
Rail Gauge
Rail gauge
Rail gauge is the distance between the inner sides of the heads of the two load bearing rails that make up a single railway line. Sixty percent of the world's railways use a standard gauge of 1,435 mm. Wider gauges are called broad gauge; smaller gauges, narrow gauge. Break-of-gauge refers to the meeting of different gauges. Some stretches of track are dual gauge, with three or four rails, allowing trains of different gauges to share them. Gauge conversion can resolve break-of-gauge problems.
New railways, especially recent high speed rails, are usually built to standard gauge. Advantages are: It facilitates inter-running with neighbouring railways. Locomotives and rolling stock can be ordered from manufacturers' standard designs and do not need to be custom built.
Generally speaking, of the gauges between 1,000 mm and 1,700 mm , standard gauge works well enough. The broader or narrower gauges in this range are not enough to overcome the disadvantages of any break of gauge in a railway system.
Historically, the choice of gauge was partly arbitrary and partly a response to local conditions. Narrow-gauge railways are cheaper to build and can negotiate sharper curves but broad-gauge railways give greater stability and permit higher speeds.
译文
铁路轨距
铁路轨距是两根承重钢轨顶端内侧之间的距离，这两根钢轨构成一条铁路线。
世界铁路的60%都使用1435毫米的标准轨距。
比标准轨距宽的轨距叫做“宽轨”，比标准轨距小的轨距叫做“窄轨”。
不同轨距交汇的地方叫做过轨点。
一些铁路的延伸线采用双重轨距，铺设三条或四条钢轨，使不同轨距的列车得以通过。
轨距转换可以解决过轨点问题。
新建铁路，特别是最近建设的高速铁路，通常都是标准轨距。
这样做的优点是：可以为相邻铁路提供便利。
机车和车辆可以订购制造商的标准设计产品，而不必量身定制。
一般来说，在1000毫米至1700毫米的轨距范围内，标准轨距可以很好的工作。
而这一范围内的宽轨或窄轨都不足以克服同一铁路系统中不同轨距过轨点的缺点。
在历史上，对轨距的选择部分原因是决策人的主观武断，部分原因是对当地情况的应对。
窄轨铁路修建起来很便宜，可以很容易的通过急转弯。
宽轨铁路可以使铁路有更好的稳定性，有更高的速度。
